The present invention relates to exercise benches for supporting a user while performing exercise, and is particularly concerned with an exercise bench for performing both abdominal and low back exercises.
Exercise benches designed for performing abdominal or sit up exercises as well as lower back exercises such as hyper-extensions are known in the field. A simple inclined bench may be used to perform sit up exercises. Devices for performing hyper-extensions typically support the user leaning forwardly against a thigh support pad engaging the front of the user's thighs with their feet held in place by foot and ankle pads. The user then bends their upper body forward and downward at the waist, and then bends back up and rearward into alignment with the lower half of their body. This exercises the user's lower back muscles.
Some exercise benches are adaptable for both abdominal and lower back exercises. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,190,513 of Habing et al. describes a dual station exercise bench having a generally A shaped frame, with a back pad pivotally secured to one leg of the frame, and a secondary tube welded to the front face of the second leg of the frame and housing an adjustable slide member with thigh support pads mounted on its upper end. A second set of roller pads are pivotally mounted on the adjustable slide member below the thigh pads, for engaging a user's ankles when performing sit up or abdominal crunch exercises. A third set of roller pads are located at the lower end of the second leg, along with angled foot pads. The user stands on the foot pads with the third roller pads engaging behind their ankles while performing lower back exercises. This exercise bench has a large number of parts and is relatively heavy. It is also not foldable for storage or shipping.
Some exercise benches which can be used for lower back or abdominal exercises can be folded, but generally require removal of some parts to allow folding of the remainder of the bench. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,206,809 of Habing requires removal of an actuator arm carrying the thigh pad before it can be folded. U.S. Pat. No. 6,258,016 of Kuo requires the seat to be removed prior to folding the remainder of the frame. This makes movement of the bench between the folded and deployed positions inconvenient and does not allow for safe storage of the separated component.